A typical inflator includes a lever arm or bell crank that is pivotally mounted about a pivot shaft that extends transversely through the inflator. The lever arm of prior art inflators is metallic; an aperture is formed in the metal and the distal end of a flexible lanyard is threaded therethrough and tied or crimped against separation therefrom. Accordingly, the lanyard is abraded by the sharp edges of the aperture through which it is threaded. The proximal end of the lanyard is secured to a handle. Thus, when the handle is pulled, the lever arm rotates about its pivot shaft and causes the puncturing of a gas cartridge within the inflator and the escaping gas is routed into the inflatable article to rapidly inflate it.
There are several structural weaknesses in the typical inflator that might result in device failure. If the lanyard separates from either the handle or the lever arm, for example, the desired inflation will not occur.
Significantly, the prior art, considered as a whole, neither teaches nor suggests how the known lanyard attachment techniques could be improved.